‘Shop Early. Start Wrapping. Enjoy Christmas’ for British Retail Consortium.

Concept:

Last autumn, with the potential for another lockdown over Christmas very much on the horizon, the British Retail Consortium had a high street crisis-in-the-making they needed to avert. The brief was simple. Getting the British public to shop earlier than usual would help prevent a perilous situation of crowded shopping centres and streets during the traditional Christmas shopping season, therefore keeping staff and customers safe. It would also help to ensure people got what they needed, as inevitably, the pincer movement of coronavirus and the ongoing Brexit negotiations was likely to lead to a shortage of in-demand gift items.

The challenge was clear though. After a year of listening to politicians and scientists telling the general public what to do, it is understandable that there would be a degree of apathy to yet more ‘advice’. So, who would our audience listen to?  Who could cut through the apathy of a lockdown-weary nation? We needed someone with absolute credibility that comes from a position of authority on the subject of Christmas shopping to deliver this very important message and front the campaign.

Execution:

There really was only one person for the job; Santa Claus himself. We positioned Santa at the now familiar government press conference lectern, giving the campaign instant saliency and cultural relevance. The tongue-in-cheek tone helped ensure the message landed and avoided being overbearing. To complete the approach, we even adopted the government’s now established ‘rule of three’ style of messaging. Rather than ‘Hands. Face. Space’, our message was ‘Shop Early. Start Wrapping. Enjoy Christmas.’

The campaign ran across print, outdoor and social media, with the creative featuring Santa Claus standing at his lectern, addressing the nation, surrounded by festive elements including Christmas wreaths and mince pies. This was supported by a 30 second radio spot which took the form of an urgent government appeal, in which Santa addresses the nation to say that he and his elves have been working early this year to ensure they maintain all possible safety measures. 

Client feedback:

Stephen Bethel, Corporate Affairs Director, at the British Retail Consortium comments: “This is a really unique campaign as it touches on something that, even a year ago, we never thought would be an issue. With everyone used to last-minute shopping trips and crowded stores, we wanted to draw attention to these changing times and the risks we face if we don’t act early, using imagery and messaging we’ve all become familiar with. It’s been a bit of a tough year for the British public, but Santa’s address to the nation shows that we can still enjoy Christmas, even if things are a little different.”

Results:

Platform        Reach             Reactions 

Facebook    16,692,215      5,427 

Twitter         12,000              444 

LinkedIn       7,263               163 

TOTAL        16,711,478       6,034